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Weathering the Wicked is a genre-crossing novel with elements of a fantasy, paranormal, and science fiction as well. Did you start writing with this in mind, or did this happen organically as you were writing?

I definitely had this in mind when writing this series. I began writing this book at the ripe age of 12, believe it or not! I revised this story and started from scratch at 25 years of age, starting with a detailed outline of everything that would happen in the book.

The supporting characters in this novel, I felt, were intriguing and well developed. Who was your favorite character to write for?

My favorite character to write for was June, the main character. This is because June is completely based off of my own life’s journey, experiences, and personality. That may make me sound a bit self-absorbed, but the reason writing this character was my favorite is because it was very therapeutic. As June goes through this journey, and is mentored by Jeremiah, Margaret, and Alexis, they were also mentoring me, even if unintentionally.

I learned a lot about myself while creating June.

The writing in your story is very artful and creative. Was it a conscious effort to create a story in this fashion or is this style of writing reflective of your writing style in general?

Honestly, a little bit of both. It is true that my writing style is more artistic and (almost) poetic by nature. However, I made it a point to really let my artistic writing strength shine in this series; I did this because I knew that the spiritual and fantastical theme in this book would appeal to artistic and creative minds.

What is the next book that you are working on and when will it be published?

The next book that will be released will be book 2 of this series, The Chronicles of Folklaria. This will be released in December, but I don’t have a specific date yet. Of course, people can always sign up for my mailing list to be alerted with this information.

In book 2, Enduring the Energy, we will get to watch June grow into a true warrior.

I am also working on a book for a 2019 release that will be a new series for young adults called “Corrupted Enchantment Saga”. It will feature familiar fairy tale lands and characters who are fighting a corrupt government system.

How far would you go to rescue someone you love? Would you travel to a magic and spiritually enlightening land that would instantly change the course of your life?

If traveling to another realm wasn’t troublesome enough, befriending a fairy, developing feelings for Ryder, and facing off with a wicked sorcerer was enough to send June’s reality into a hazy mess.

From the ashes of mortal humanity rises a young female savior to take on the wicked forces of Folklaria. With the odds stacked against her, can June conquer her fears and uncertainties to rescue, not only her sister, but an entire land riddled with wicked magic?

Away from Home by Joanne Clairmont is a very real and heartbreaking look into the troubled thoughts and insecure feelings many children and teens experience when part of the foster care system. As an experienced foster mom, Clairmont has dealt with a number of heart-breaking cases of fostered teens feeling lonely, isolated, and abandoned upon entering her home. She writes vividly about the struggles and emotions those in her care have faced, and the unseen turmoil brewing within them as they are placed into yet another new environment. Oftentimes sorrowful, Away from Home is an important read in understanding the ups and downs of the foster care system by those directly experiencing it.

A short book broken up into six sections, Away from Home shares Clairmont’s foster care experiences in poem form. Each section contains several poems related to a specific type of foster child, such as The Unsettled Teenager and The Challenging Teenager. Most of the six sections share the pain and loss of security many fostered teenagers can relate to when thrust into a foster situation. The last section, titled The Independent Teenager, completes the journey of emotional growth of the foster care teenager and consists of more uplifting and positive poems.

I appreciated that the author could interpret the actions of her fostered teenagers from the first night they arrived at her house until they had grown and moved on with their lives. I found the poems in The Unaccompanied Minor and The Unsettled Teenager especially easy to connect with due to their complete realization and understanding of how a teenager would feel upon entering a new foster placement. They presented a personal psychology into the effects of the instability and adaption foster children must cope with through no fault of their own.

I especially liked how the author construed the emotions of a new placement in “Don’t know if I am coming or going.” It was a simple and realistic take on how a newly placed teenager may feel upon arriving in a new place after enduring several former placements. It captures the frustration and identifies the protective wall that has been built up to shield the fostered teenager from experiencing any more emotional loss.

While there were many poems that hit the mark in eliciting a feeling or emotion when read, there were also a few that didn’t do it for me. “It is not cool” and “No school today” seemed like unfinished thoughts or small snippets that could have been better fleshed out. I think the book would greatly benefit from some additional structuring and the addition of more personalized images. The images in the book are generic and vary in artistic design. More simplified, original artwork would do wonders to visually present the ideas and feelings of the poems.

Overall I thought Away From Home really presented the emotional psychology and depth of the foster care system and those who live it. It created a descriptive and realistic picture for those who may not be familiar with the tragedy and distress many teens experience while in foster care. Aside from the few issues I had in reading, this book was an intense, creatively written study of an important subject.

If you’ve ever wondered where your mind goes in those moments when you’re not quite awake or when you’ve been staring out the window for just a tad too long, you will find some clues to an answer in Ruth Finnegan’s Entrancement. This collection of essays from educated professionals will expose you to different viewpoints on the topics of dreaming, trancing and the collective unconscious. Fashioned the same way a textbook might be, readers will gain insight into various hypotheses on what happens to our minds when we enter these states. Exploring the world from a slight occultist view, readers are privy to personal stories from professionals in the field of the social sciences who have backed up their personal experiences with data and sources. Investigate how music and dreaming contribute to artistic expression; identify your own personal cues and what might draw you into a trance.

Finnegan begins with her own personal experience with trancing. During her sections at the beginning and the end of the book she uses language that is friendly for non-academic readers. The same can be said for all of those who have contributed to this piece. By using common language, Finnegan has opened up the potentials for her audience. Anyone who is interested in this topic will find useful information within its pages.

There are some typos in the book which were distracting in such a highly educated piece. But the errors are few and can be easily forgotten. The presentation of the book leaves a little to be desired. The table of contents could use some formatting and the pages between essays could have been laid out better. These are all minor things, but they impact the reader experience.

It is interesting to read a collection of essays on a somewhat supernatural topic that is rife with research. For someone who is studying psychology or the other social sciences, Entrancement by Ruth Finnegan would be an excellent resource piece to read. The abilities of the mind have been studied for decades and we are no closer to unraveling the secrets now than we were in the beginning. If you’re a beginner doing preliminary readings or research on this topic, you will find this book useful. The content is not only useful, but the suggested readings in the back open up a whole library of future readings. For those who hunger for more information, who want to explore this world and our place in it, this is a delightful bonus.